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Venice
The minute we stepped out of the train station, we knew we were in a
different world, with water buses (vaporetti) making their rounds in the
canal immediately in front of us; it was one of those I-can't-believe-we're-here
moments. We boarded our vaporetto and made our way down the Grand Canal to the
Rialto stop
and then through the narrow streets.
Wending our way through the labyrinth of canals and streets, we
eventually come to a courtyard and spot a gate into a smaller courtyard. We
strain to see anything that looks like a hotel, and see a door that looks
promising. We go in and are met by practically the entire Petruch family, the
genial, attractive, and helpful hosts at Locanda Orseolo, the #1 user-rated
hotel in Venice, and some would say the best in all Italy. Not that it is a
luxury hotel, except for the concierge service, giant homemade breakfasts, and
location on a quiet canal five minutes' walk from San Marco in one direction and
Rialto in the other. (Picture: the view from our window) 
It's
difficult not to make this sound like an advertisement for the hotel; but I
can't help it; it was one of the most memorable things in Venice, already a
unique city full of art, churches, music, and a lot of scenery that I want to
share with you here. Before embarking on the usual wonders of Venice, here are a
few pictures of the Petruchs, first Barbara, in one of her roles, as waitress:  Then
Matteo, as chef (makes a great lemon crepe), but also chief concierge:
Then Francesco, front desk and general facilitator.
For a picture of the missing member of the family, Bruno, and other pictures
in and around the hotel, click here at Locanda
Orseolo and then click on "View candid user photos."
San Marco and the Doge's Palace
As usual, click on any of the thumbnails below for a bigger, clearer picture.
We begin with the attraction closest to the hotel. Once we got past the first
jaw-dropping sight (that you saw on my home page on the way here), we took a
closer look at the cathedral, as below
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| Piazza di San Marco |
San Marco detail
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San Marco's horses |
Next
to San Marco is the palace of the chief executive of the city-state of
Venice. |
At night the Piazza
San Marco becomes a friendly battlefield of competing orchestras.
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We'll return further below to San Marco and the Doge's Palace as seen
at night and from the lagoon; but first, we take another look at the scenery at
our most convenient vaporetto stop:
Rialto
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| Ron enjoying the
spring sun. |
The evening turned
Rialto into something so romantic I couldn't help turning it into
something artsy, as you'll see when you click on the picture. |
As dusk was
overtaken by night, this was the scene. |
And this is what
our Rialto vaporetto station looked like at night. |
Night Scenes at San Marco and the Doge's Palace
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| From the front of the Doge's
Palace, looking toward one of the buildings of the Piazza San Marco and
beyond to Santa Maria della Salute |
A closer look, as the several
domes of Santa Maria della Salute get mysterious. |
San Marco transforms from its
daytime excess to something a bit spooky. |
The "Bridge of Sighs,"
named not for the dejection of the condemned on this passageway to
prison, but rather for the inevitable reaction to the city's beauty. |
Gondolaphilia
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| Here are a few scenes from our
gondola ride at dusk. |
A highlight was passing under
the Bridge of Sighs. |
Our gondola ride ends back at
the Doge's Palace. |
My impressionistic tribute to
the gondolier. |
Scenes from the Bacino di San Marco
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| Venturing into the lagoon on the
vaporetto from San Marco, we view the Grand Canal and the part of the
lagoon along which the Doge's Palace lies, known as the Bacino di San
Marco. |
Nearby is the Giudecca, one of
the islands closest to the main island on which most of Venice lies. San
Giorgio Maggiore is the prominent church there. |
The end of another day brings us
back into the Vallaresso vaporetto station at San Marco. |
Islands of the Lagoon
Burano
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| The most colorful island, indeed
even more colorful than Venice itself, is Burano. |
Burano has two main claims to
fame, lace being one. |
The other is its out-of-control
color scheme. |
Casa de Bepi Sua has to work
hard to stand out from all the other over-the-top colors of Burano. |
Torcello & Murano
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| In Torcello, this is the
interior of the oldest cathedral in Venice; dating from the 9th century,
it is one of the oldest of all buildings in Venice. |
Outside, the view includes the
cathedral on the left and the adjacent church, Santa Fosca, on the right. |
Continuing our tour of the
lagoon islands on another day, we come to Murano, the glass-making center.
Here is one of the glass furnaces. |
A product of Murano |
More of the Lagoon
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| While out in the lagoon, let's
take another passing look at Burano. |
Similarly, here's another view
of the cathedral on Torcello. |
Returning by way of the cemetery
island, we pay our respects to Igor Stravinsky. |
Farewell to Venice
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| Well, there are just a few more
pictures left with which to take our leave. Masks are iconic of Venice's
distance from reality. These are from Burano. |
Just one more mask, from the
main island cluster. |
Finally, two views from the top
of the San Marco Campanile: this one, another bit of Venetian fancy, is
Scala di Bovolo |
Our last view is a lofty one of
Santa Maria della Salute |
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